Value of Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM)

Value of Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM) Organizations worldwide are continuously trying to develop new and innovative ways to enhance their competitiveness. Bacallan (2000) suggests that some of these organizations are enhancing their competitiveness through improvements in their environmental performance to comply with mounting environmental regulations, to address the environmental concerns of their customers, and to mitigate the environmental impact of their production and service activities. Green supply chain management as a form of environmental improvement is an operational initiative that many organizations are adopting to address such environmental issues. Currently, the green concept is a critical issue for companies, but when the majority of businesses are cost focused, the idea of implementing and moving toward green practices is often seen as a costly strategy. Bowen et al. (2001) state that organizations will adopt green supply chain management practices if they identify that this will result in specific financial and operational benefits. According to Routroy (2009), Greening the manufacturing supply chain may result in one or more benefits, in terms of cost reduction, operational efficiency improvement, flexibility improvement, sales enhancement, customer value enhancement, and societal image improvement. Green supply chain management is also to enhance firms environmental performance through inter-organizational collaboration with business partners and increase efficiency by cost saving programs and proactive risk management practices (Hervani et al., 2005; Rao and Holt, 2005; Zhu and Sarkis, 2007). We will review the literature about Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM) concept and then we will see how it is translated within the supply chains. Then, the common purpose of this research will be to identify the link between GSCM and overall firm performance. We decided, based on the literature and on a specific framework (Rao Holt, 2005) applied in Asia, to tackle the concept of green supply chain management in Western Europe by including environmental initiatives in: (1) Inbound logistics; (2) Production or the internal supply chain; (3) Outbound logistics, including reverse logistics. Nowadays, how organisations are implementing GSCM and what are the impacts on their business? At the end of this research we will identify the best practices, and the way they are they measured. Moreover, we will see in what extent an effective Green Supply Chain Management could be a driver for innovation and business performance in manufacturing firms? Finally, we will see if Green Supply Chain Management lead to profitability and competitiveness. Our study will consider manufacturing companies in Western Europe. II Literature review Definition Green supply chain management Several studies have considered the concept of ecological sustainability as a framework for studying management practices in both operational and strategic contexts (Sarkis and Rasheed, 1995; Klassen and McLaughlin, 1996; King and Lenox, 2001). As part of this effort, other studies have examined the greening of supply chains within various contexts including in product design (Allenby, 1993; Gupta, 1995), process design (Porter and Van der Linde, 1995a; Klassen and McLaughlin, 1996), manufacturing practices (Winsemius and Guntram, 1992), purchasing (Handfield et al., 2002) and a broad mixture of these elements (Bowen et al., 2001a). It is not surprising that GSCM finds its definition in supply chain management. Adding the green component to supply chain management involves addressing the influence and relationships of supply chain management to the natural environment. Motivated by an environmentally-conscious mindset, it can also stem from a competitiveness motive within organizations. In this paper GSCM is defined as: Green Supply Chain Management GSCM = Green Purchasing + Green Manufacturing/Materials Management + Green Distribution=Marketing + Reverse Logistics Figure 1 shows this GSCM equation graphically, where reverse logistics closes the loop of a typical forward supply chain and includes reuse, remanufacturing, and/or recycling of materials into new materials or other products with value in the marketplace. The idea is to eliminate or minimize waste (energy, emissions, chemical/hazardous, solid wastes). This figure is representative of a single organizations internal supply chain, its major operational elements and the linkage to external organizations. A number of environmentally conscious practices are evident throughout the supply chain ranging from green design (marketing and engineering), green procurement practices (e.g. certifying suppliers, purchasing environmentally sound materials/products), total quality environmental management (internal performance measurement, pollution prevention), environmentally friendly packaging and transportation, to the various product end-of-life practices defined by the Res of reduction, reuse, remanufacturing, recycling. Expanding this figure, a number of organizational relationships could be found at various stages of thismodel, including customers and their chains, as well as suppliers and their chains, forming webs of relationships. Figure 1. GSCM graph The development of industrial ecosystems would be greatly supported by GSCM practices. Korhonen and Niutanen (2003) in their study of material and energy flows in the local forest industry in Finland suggested these flows were comparable to other economic and industrial systems. In the last two decades, the product-based systems perspective and the geographically defined local-regional industrial ecosystem have Porter (1991) argues the pressure to innovate from an environmental perspective comes from regulatory pressure, as firms respond in creative and dynamic ways to environmental regulation by introducing innovations improving environmental outcomes. Other studies concluded environmental innovation is the result of market pressures causing firms to become more efficient. Porter and Van der Linde (1995a, b) concluded firms respond to competitive conditions and regulatory pressure by developing strategies to maximize resource productivity, enabling them to simultaneously improve their industrial and environmental performance. Furthering this issue, Greffen and Rothenberg (2000) suggest suppliers can be an important source of enhanced competency for radical environmental innovation, which, in relation to an integrated technological system, demands capabilities beyond those likely to exist within a single company. The added competency brought by the supply chain partners is important. Other external pressures do exist and include environmental compliance, liability, issues of business continuity, the call for benchmarking to national, international, or industry standards, customer attitudes toward product take-back, and even pressures from inter-organizational information technology/data management systems. The innovation of GSCM/Performance Measurement is necessary for a number of reasons in response to external pressures. For example, business performance measurement, for purposes of external reporting, is fundamentally driven by the creation, maximization and defence of economic rents or surplus. These surpluses or rents in business come from distinctive capabilities such as brands and reputation, strategic assets, innovations, and the distinctive structure of relationships firms enjoy both internally with their employees and/or externally with their customers and suppliers. External reporting is also necessary to maintain organizational legitimacy with respect to environmental issues (Harvey and Schaefer, 2001). Sustainability. One of the major definitions of sustainability and certainly most well known is that of the Brundtland Commission (World Commission on Environment and Development, 1987, p.8): development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. This short definition includes the interest of understanding the environmental impact of economic activity in both developing and industrialized economies (Erlich and Erlich, 1991); ensuring worldwide food safety (Lal et al., 2002); ensuring that vital human needs are met (Savitz and Weber, 2006); and assuring the protection of non-renewable resources (Whiteman and Cooper, 2000). Unfortunately, the societal aspect of sustainability is complicated for firms to apply and provides little explanation regarding how organizations might recognize future versus present needs, determine the technologies and resources necessary to meet those needs, and understand how to balance organizational responsibilities to numerous stakeholders such as shareholders, employees, society and the natural environment (Hart, 1995; Starik and Rands, 1995). Sustainability has been also investigated in the fields of management, operations, and engineering. Within the management literature, most of the current conceptualizations of organizational sustainability have focused on ecological sustainability (the natural environment), with little recognition of social and economic responsibilities (Jennings and Zandbergen, 1995; Shrivastava, 1995a; Starik and Rands, 1995). Sustainable refers to the triple bottom line, for economic, social and environmental. An approach to competitive advantage. A particular organization has competitive advantage when it achieves a higher return on investment than its competitors, or it is able to do so (Grant, 1996). Therefore, in order to have competitive advantage organizations must have the ability to obtain higher profit margins than other companies in the industry. Organizations with competitive advantage, however, might show not the highest profit rate. For example, competitive organizations might prefer, for one or another reason, to sell their products and services at a lower price than the maximum price it could mark. Two major types of competitive advantage can be enjoyed by organizations (Porter, 1985): cost advantage, which is the result of supplying similar products and/or services to low prices; and differentiation advantage, which comes from offering differentiated products and/or services to customers, who, in turn, are ready to pay an additional price which overcomes the additional differentiation costs. While the cost advantage position implies to have the lowest costs in the industry, differentiation advantage refers to offering something unique which is valued by customers. Competitive advantage can derive from one or more factors or sources. Firstly, literature on strategic management suggests the following major sources of cost advantage (e.g., Porter, 1985; Grant, 1996): scale economies, learning economies, production capacity management, product design, cost of inputs, process technology, and management efficiency. Secondly, sources of differentiation advantage include tangible and intangible aspects which are significantly valued by potential customers as to be ready to pay an additional price for them (e.g., Porter, 1985; Grant, 1996); tangible aspects refer to observable characteristics of the products and services, their performance, and complementary products and services; intangible aspects, in turn, include social, emotional, psychological and aesthetic considerations which are present in any choice of products and services. Recently, a major theoretical framework has been developed in strategic management literature which seems to be particularly appropriate for identifying the characteristics that a particular resource or capability must show in order to be a major source of competitive advantage. This theoretical framework is the resource based view of the firm theory. Performance Corporate performance measurement and its field application continues to grow. The diversity and level of performance measures are linked to the goal of the company or the individual strategic business units features. For instance, when measuring performance, organizations have to think about existing financial measures such as return on investment, profitability, market share and revenue growth at a competitive and strategic level. Other measures are more operationally focused, but may inevitably be linked to strategic level measures and issues. This is the case of customer service and inventory performance (supply, turnover). GSCM implementation Where to begin? Viable environmental sustainability programs require meaningful action across a broad range of processes. Some of the most impactful areas include: Production planning: The most valuable members of a supply chain are able to provide accurate forecasts and deliver reliably so as to help reduce over purchasing, over-production and waste Manufacturing: The adoption of techniques such as lean process improvement should result in less over processing as well as reduced energy intensive storage and waste Distribution: Network redesign. Smart routing, backhauling, fill optimization and mode switching à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬  all are likely to result in fewer freight miles Green design: The electronics and related high-tech industries practice collaboration as a means of optimizing the green aspects of their components and end-products; proactive and/or influential members of a supply chain can promote/pursue similar collaboration/ innovation Packaging: The greenest firms seek to minimize the environmental impact of packaging, not only by using less, but also by evaluating the energy, waste, recovery and other life cycle impacts of their packaging choices Recycled content: Companies score green points by maximizing their use. of these materials as well as by using materials in products that are in turn easily recyclable Warehousing: Challenge existing assumptions in light of higher energy costs and the need to reduce carbon footprints Green energy: More green points are available by using green or renewable energy sources à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬  although this can be difficult in regulated energy markets (and a factor in future location decisions) IT: Videoconferencing and remote servicing can reduce business travel; Energy Star rated PCs along with optimized power consumption settings can significantly pare energy costs Server farms: Energy efficient servers arrayed according to state-of-the-art cooling practices can generate enormous energy savings Ridesharing/telecommuting: A growing number of companies are working with municipalities to better optimize public transportation to their facilities. More companies are also enabling more workdays at home as well as providing incentives for carpooling Estates: Investments in building air tightness, insulation and energy efficient heating, cooling, lighting, plant and equipment can significantly reduce carbon footprints Green procurement: It is possible to reduce your carbon footprint by paying more attention to your own procurement. Supplier carbon footprint, ISO certifications, procurement distance have to be part of the selection criterias. Conceptual framework Greening the inbound function It is argued that greening the supply chain has numerous benefits to an organization, ranging from cost reduction, to integrating suppliers in a participative decision-making process that promotes environmental innovation (Bowen et al., 2001; Hall, 1993; Rao, 2002). Critical parts of the inbound function are the purchasing and supply field. Green purchasing strategies are adopted by organizations in response to the increasing global concerns of environmental sustainability. The Green purchasing should be able address reduction of waste produced, material substitution through environmental sourcing of raw materials, and waste minimization of hazardous materials. (Rao Holt, 2005) The involvement and support of suppliers is crucial to achieving such goals. (Vachon and Klassen, 2006). Furthermore, organizations are managing more and more their suppliers environmental performance to ensure that the materials and equipments supplied by them are environmentally-friendly in nature and are produced using environmentally-friendly processes. Min and Galle (1997) explore green purchasing to determine the key factors affecting a buying firms choice of suppliers, the key barriers and the obstacles to green purchasing initiatives. They also investigated the impact of green purchasing on a corporations environmental goals. Below listed subjects to get information on the green inbound phase of a supply chain: (1) Guiding suppliers to set up their own environmental programs; (2) bringing together suppliers in the same industry to share their know-how and problems; (3) informing suppliers about the benefits of cleaner production and technologies; (4) urging/pressuring suppliers to take environmental actions; and (5) choice of suppliers by environmental criteria. Greening the production phase or the internal supply chain In this phase, there are a number of concepts that can be explored, such as cleaner production, design for environment, remanufacturing and lean production. Hong, He-Boong, Jungbae Roh, (2009) highlight through their research that strategic green management needs the combination of integrated product development (IPD) and supply chain coordination (SCC) for desired business outcomes. Thanks to a survey on 580 manufacturing plants in the US, adopting cleaner production techniques, Florida and Davison (2001) showed that green corporations are innovative in their environmental practices, and these strategies emerge from a real commitment towards reducing waste and pollution. Lean production/manufacturing is also an important consideration in reducing the environmental impact of the production phase. In their research King and Lenox (2001), concludes that lean production is complementary to improvements in environmental performance and it often lowers the marginal cost of pollution reduction thus enhancing competitiveness. In addition, Rothenberg et al. (2001) identify that lean plants aim to minimize waste and buffers, leading not only to reduce buffers in environmental technology and management, but also in an overall approach to manufacturing that minimizes waste products. (1) Environment-friendly raw materials; (2) substitution of environmentally questionable materials; (3) taking environmental criteria into consideration; (4) environmental design considerations; (5) optimization of process to reduce solid waste and emissions; (6) use of cleaner technology processes to make savings in energy, water, and waste; (7) internal recycling of materials within the production phase; and (8) incorporating environmental total quality management principles such as worker empowerment. Greening the outbound function On the outbound side of the green supply chain, green logistics comprises all links from the manufacturer to the end users and includes products, processes, packaging, transport, and disposal (Skjoett-Larsen, 2000). Rao, (2003) and Sarkis, (1999) argue on the fact that green marketing, environment-friendly packaging, and environment-friendly distribution, are all initiatives that might improve the environmental performance of an organization and its supply chain. Reverse logistics and waste exchange and ore generally management of wastes in the outbound function can lead to cost savings and enhanced competitiveness (Rao, 2003). In order to address these environmental impacts of packaging, many countries now have programs and legislation that aims to minimize the amount of packaging that enters the waste stream, such as the Packaging Directive in the EU. The distribution, for the whole supply chain is a huge stake for green management. In fact the distribution results of a trade-off between efficiency and effectiveness firm strategy. For this reason is difficult to handle As part of outbound logistics, green marketing has an important part to play in the link between environmental innovation and competitive advantage (Menon and Menon, 1997). Encouraging suppliers to take back packaging is a form of reverse logistics that can be an important consideration in greening the outbound function, with a study by Dorn (1996) identifying an increase in market share amongst companies that implemented an environmentally-friendly packaging scheme. The product design step is more and more integrated within green supply chain issues because 80% of the environmental burden and cost of a product is fixed during this phase (Carbone, Moatti, 2008). Strategic variables to take in account for an empirical study; (1) Environment-friendly waste management; (2) environmental improvement of packaging; (3) taking back packaging; (4) eco-labeling; (5) recovery of companys end-of-life products; (6) providing consumers with information on environmental friendly products and/or production methods; and (7) use of environmentally-friendly transportation. Competitiveness Economic performance Bacallan (2000) suggests that organizations are enhancing their competitiveness through improvements in their environmental performance to comply with mounting environmental regulations, to address the environmental concerns of their customers (à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦). However, an interesting point to notice is that, as long as the market does not seek environmental value-drivers in the products and services it purchases, environmental issues are not necessarily considered by organizations and consumers. (Rao Holt, 2005) Fortunately, over the last few years there has been a growth in environmental awareness of consumers in general. Clearly a growing number of corporations are developing company-wide environmental programs and green products sourced from markets around the world. Therefore, environmental issues are becoming a source of competitiveness. All these efforts aim to improve environmental performance, enhance corporate image, reduce costs, reduce risks of non-compliance and improve marketing advantage. Nevertheless, some organizations are still looking upon green initiatives as involving trade-offs between environmental performance and economic performance. The financial performance of firms is affected by environmental performance in a variety of ways. When waste, both hazardous and non-hazardous, is minimized as part of environmental management, it results in better utilization of natural resources, improved efficiency, higher productivity and reduces operating costs (Rao Holt, 2005). Nowadays and in the future, a good green player could expect to increase its brand image and its market share and then improve its profitability against company without enough green concern while saving costs by innovative processes. To investigate the link between green supply chain management and economic performance we could refers to those key aspects: (1) New market opportunities; (2) product price increase; (3) profit margin;(4) sales; and (5) market share. And competitiveness: (1) Improved efficiency; (2) quality improvement; (3) productivity improvement; and (4) cost savings. Methodology To validate our research, an empirical, survey-based research approach will be taken. Based on the empirical studies through the literature, and a meaningful framework used in the relevant research of Rao Holt in 2005 applied on Asian companies. We choose to follow a common technique to validate the framework presented in the preceding section, a linear SEM (Stochastic Expectation Maximization) approach is used (JÃÆ' ¶reskog and SÃÆ' ¶rbom, 1993) to validate the causal relationships between the different latent constructs of: greening the inbound function; greening production; greening the outbound function; competitiveness and; economic performance. The questionnaire will be distributed to the supply chain managers and/or environmental management representative (EMR) or the chief executive of manufacturing organizations in Western Europe. In order to have both MNCs and SMEs ( Responses will be collected on a four-point and five-point Likert scale, and open-ended questions. The four-point scale served to force the respondents to check either on the negative side or on the positive side. The choice not to focus only on the leading edge ISO14001 accredited organizations (running environmental management) allow us to broader our research and then make a comparison between those without formal environmental management accreditation, and best players accredited. In terms of financial performance, this strategy will be interesting for identifying benefits and again do comparisons. Expected results. As this type of research was already done in South-Est Asia, our results will allow us to compare our findings and trend with those in South-Est Asia. We expect a response of 10%, therefore we will send to a consequent sample to get sufficient and tangible return. We will probably be able to confirm that greening the supply chain also has potential to lead to competitiveness and economic performance. As the current environmental concern in Europe is high, including governmental and customers pressures these research findings would probably show that firms that are greening their supply chains not only achieve substantial cost savings, but also enhance either sales, market share or exploit new market opportunities. The cost aspect will be important to assess as it is directly connected to the overall performance. The main limitation of this research will be probably the small sample of organizations, but the lack of empirical research in Europe will be also one of the main strengths of this paper. Therefore, the findings cannot be generalized to all organizations in this region or around the world. Finally, future research should empirically test the relationships suggested in this paper in different countries, to enable comparative studies. For further research, a larger sample will allow detailed cross-sectoral comparisons and establish international patterns regarding benefits from GSCM. Performance Measurement for Green Supply chain management: Context In supply chains with multiple actors, (vendors manufacturers, distributors and retailers) whether regionally or globally dispersed, it is difficult to attribute performance results to one particular entity within the chain, by the way performance measurement is really challenging. There are difficulties in measuring performance within organizations and even more difficulties arise in inter-organizational environmental performance measurement. The reasons for lack of systems to measure performance across organizations are multidimensional, including non-standardized data, poor technological integration, geographical and cultural differences, differences in organizational policy, lack of agreed upon metrics, or poor understanding of the need for inter-organizational performance measurement. (Hervani, A. Helms, M. Sarkis, J., 2005) Performance measurement in supply chains is difficult for additional reasons, especially when looking at numerous tiers within a supply chain, and green supply chain management performance measurement, or GSCM/PM, is virtually non-existent. With these barriers and difficulties in mind, GSCM/PM is needed for a number of reasons (including regulatory, marketing and competitiveness reasons). Overcoming these barriers is not a trivial issue, but the long-term sustainability (environmental and otherwise) and competitiveness of organizations may rely on successful adoption of GSCM/PM. The basic purposes of GSCM/PM are: external reporting (economic rent), internal control (managing the business better) and internal analysis (understanding the business better and continuous improvement). These are the fundamental issues that drive the development of frameworks for business performance measurement. It is important to consider both purpose, as well as the interrelationships of these various measurements. Supply chain management Supply chain management is the coordination and management of a complex network of activities involved in delivering a finished product to the end-user or customer. It is a vital business function and the process includes sourcing raw materials and parts, manufacturing and assembling products, storage, order entry and tracking, distribution through the various channels and finally delivery to the customer. A companys supply chain structure consists of external suppliers, internal functions of the company, and external distributors, as well as customers (commercial or end-user). Firms may be members of multiple supply chains simultaneously. The management and coordination is further complicated by global players spread across geographic boundaries and multiple time zones. The successful management of a supply chain is also influenced by customer expectations, globalization, information technology, government regulation, competition and the environment. Performance management and measurement Corporate performance measurement and its application continue to grow and encompass both quantitative and qualitative measurements and approaches. The variety and level of performance measures depends greatly on the goal of the organization or the individual strategic business units characteristics. For example, when measuring performance, companies must consider existing financial measures such as return on investment, profitability, market share and revenue growth at a more competitive and strategic level. Other measures such as customer service and inventory performance (supply, turnover) are more operationally focused, but may necessarily be linked to strategic level measures and issues. Overall, these difficulties in developing standards for performance measurement are traced to the various measurement taxonomies. Example taxonomic considerations include: management level to measure à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" strategic, tactical, or operational; tangible versus intangible measures; variations in collection and reporting; an organizations location along the supply chain or functional differentiation within organizations (e.g. accounting, versus marketing or operations). Similar to the performance measurement used, the performance measurement system may be unique to each individual organization, or unit within an organization, reflecting its fundamental purpose and its environment. Several studies have investigated the universal principles of performance measurement (Adams et al., 1995; Gunasekaran et al., 2001; Sink and Tuttle, 1990). These studies arrived at a number of conclus Value of Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM) Value of Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM) Organizations worldwide are continuously trying to develop new and innovative ways to enhance their competitiveness. Bacallan (2000) suggests that some of these organizations are enhancing their competitiveness through improvements in their environmental performance to comply with mounting environmental regulations, to address the environmental concerns of their customers, and to mitigate the environmental impact of their production and service activities. Green supply chain management as a form of environmental improvement is an operational initiative that many organizations are adopting to address such environmental issues. Currently, the green concept is a critical issue for companies, but when the majority of businesses are cost focused, the idea of implementing and moving toward green practices is often seen as a costly strategy. Bowen et al. (2001) state that organizations will adopt green supply chain management practices if they identify that this will result in specific financial and operational benefits. According to Routroy (2009), Greening the manufacturing supply chain may result in one or more benefits, in terms of cost reduction, operational efficiency improvement, flexibility improvement, sales enhancement, customer value enhancement, and societal image improvement. Green supply chain management is also to enhance firms environmental performance through inter-organizational collaboration with business partners and increase efficiency by cost saving programs and proactive risk management practices (Hervani et al., 2005; Rao and Holt, 2005; Zhu and Sarkis, 2007). We will review the literature about Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM) concept and then we will see how it is translated within the supply chains. Then, the common purpose of this research will be to identify the link between GSCM and overall firm performance. We decided, based on the literature and on a specific framework (Rao Holt, 2005) applied in Asia, to tackle the concept of green supply chain management in Western Europe by including environmental initiatives in: (1) Inbound logistics; (2) Production or the internal supply chain; (3) Outbound logistics, including reverse logistics. Nowadays, how organisations are implementing GSCM and what are the impacts on their business? At the end of this research we will identify the best practices, and the way they are they measured. Moreover, we will see in what extent an effective Green Supply Chain Management could be a driver for innovation and business performance in manufacturing firms? Finally, we will see if Green Supply Chain Management lead to profitability and competitiveness. Our study will consider manufacturing companies in Western Europe. II Literature review Definition Green supply chain management Several studies have considered the concept of ecological sustainability as a framework for studying management practices in both operational and strategic contexts (Sarkis and Rasheed, 1995; Klassen and McLaughlin, 1996; King and Lenox, 2001). As part of this effort, other studies have examined the greening of supply chains within various contexts including in product design (Allenby, 1993; Gupta, 1995), process design (Porter and Van der Linde, 1995a; Klassen and McLaughlin, 1996), manufacturing practices (Winsemius and Guntram, 1992), purchasing (Handfield et al., 2002) and a broad mixture of these elements (Bowen et al., 2001a). It is not surprising that GSCM finds its definition in supply chain management. Adding the green component to supply chain management involves addressing the influence and relationships of supply chain management to the natural environment. Motivated by an environmentally-conscious mindset, it can also stem from a competitiveness motive within organizations. In this paper GSCM is defined as: Green Supply Chain Management GSCM = Green Purchasing + Green Manufacturing/Materials Management + Green Distribution=Marketing + Reverse Logistics Figure 1 shows this GSCM equation graphically, where reverse logistics closes the loop of a typical forward supply chain and includes reuse, remanufacturing, and/or recycling of materials into new materials or other products with value in the marketplace. The idea is to eliminate or minimize waste (energy, emissions, chemical/hazardous, solid wastes). This figure is representative of a single organizations internal supply chain, its major operational elements and the linkage to external organizations. A number of environmentally conscious practices are evident throughout the supply chain ranging from green design (marketing and engineering), green procurement practices (e.g. certifying suppliers, purchasing environmentally sound materials/products), total quality environmental management (internal performance measurement, pollution prevention), environmentally friendly packaging and transportation, to the various product end-of-life practices defined by the Res of reduction, reuse, remanufacturing, recycling. Expanding this figure, a number of organizational relationships could be found at various stages of thismodel, including customers and their chains, as well as suppliers and their chains, forming webs of relationships. Figure 1. GSCM graph The development of industrial ecosystems would be greatly supported by GSCM practices. Korhonen and Niutanen (2003) in their study of material and energy flows in the local forest industry in Finland suggested these flows were comparable to other economic and industrial systems. In the last two decades, the product-based systems perspective and the geographically defined local-regional industrial ecosystem have Porter (1991) argues the pressure to innovate from an environmental perspective comes from regulatory pressure, as firms respond in creative and dynamic ways to environmental regulation by introducing innovations improving environmental outcomes. Other studies concluded environmental innovation is the result of market pressures causing firms to become more efficient. Porter and Van der Linde (1995a, b) concluded firms respond to competitive conditions and regulatory pressure by developing strategies to maximize resource productivity, enabling them to simultaneously improve their industrial and environmental performance. Furthering this issue, Greffen and Rothenberg (2000) suggest suppliers can be an important source of enhanced competency for radical environmental innovation, which, in relation to an integrated technological system, demands capabilities beyond those likely to exist within a single company. The added competency brought by the supply chain partners is important. Other external pressures do exist and include environmental compliance, liability, issues of business continuity, the call for benchmarking to national, international, or industry standards, customer attitudes toward product take-back, and even pressures from inter-organizational information technology/data management systems. The innovation of GSCM/Performance Measurement is necessary for a number of reasons in response to external pressures. For example, business performance measurement, for purposes of external reporting, is fundamentally driven by the creation, maximization and defence of economic rents or surplus. These surpluses or rents in business come from distinctive capabilities such as brands and reputation, strategic assets, innovations, and the distinctive structure of relationships firms enjoy both internally with their employees and/or externally with their customers and suppliers. External reporting is also necessary to maintain organizational legitimacy with respect to environmental issues (Harvey and Schaefer, 2001). Sustainability. One of the major definitions of sustainability and certainly most well known is that of the Brundtland Commission (World Commission on Environment and Development, 1987, p.8): development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. This short definition includes the interest of understanding the environmental impact of economic activity in both developing and industrialized economies (Erlich and Erlich, 1991); ensuring worldwide food safety (Lal et al., 2002); ensuring that vital human needs are met (Savitz and Weber, 2006); and assuring the protection of non-renewable resources (Whiteman and Cooper, 2000). Unfortunately, the societal aspect of sustainability is complicated for firms to apply and provides little explanation regarding how organizations might recognize future versus present needs, determine the technologies and resources necessary to meet those needs, and understand how to balance organizational responsibilities to numerous stakeholders such as shareholders, employees, society and the natural environment (Hart, 1995; Starik and Rands, 1995). Sustainability has been also investigated in the fields of management, operations, and engineering. Within the management literature, most of the current conceptualizations of organizational sustainability have focused on ecological sustainability (the natural environment), with little recognition of social and economic responsibilities (Jennings and Zandbergen, 1995; Shrivastava, 1995a; Starik and Rands, 1995). Sustainable refers to the triple bottom line, for economic, social and environmental. An approach to competitive advantage. A particular organization has competitive advantage when it achieves a higher return on investment than its competitors, or it is able to do so (Grant, 1996). Therefore, in order to have competitive advantage organizations must have the ability to obtain higher profit margins than other companies in the industry. Organizations with competitive advantage, however, might show not the highest profit rate. For example, competitive organizations might prefer, for one or another reason, to sell their products and services at a lower price than the maximum price it could mark. Two major types of competitive advantage can be enjoyed by organizations (Porter, 1985): cost advantage, which is the result of supplying similar products and/or services to low prices; and differentiation advantage, which comes from offering differentiated products and/or services to customers, who, in turn, are ready to pay an additional price which overcomes the additional differentiation costs. While the cost advantage position implies to have the lowest costs in the industry, differentiation advantage refers to offering something unique which is valued by customers. Competitive advantage can derive from one or more factors or sources. Firstly, literature on strategic management suggests the following major sources of cost advantage (e.g., Porter, 1985; Grant, 1996): scale economies, learning economies, production capacity management, product design, cost of inputs, process technology, and management efficiency. Secondly, sources of differentiation advantage include tangible and intangible aspects which are significantly valued by potential customers as to be ready to pay an additional price for them (e.g., Porter, 1985; Grant, 1996); tangible aspects refer to observable characteristics of the products and services, their performance, and complementary products and services; intangible aspects, in turn, include social, emotional, psychological and aesthetic considerations which are present in any choice of products and services. Recently, a major theoretical framework has been developed in strategic management literature which seems to be particularly appropriate for identifying the characteristics that a particular resource or capability must show in order to be a major source of competitive advantage. This theoretical framework is the resource based view of the firm theory. Performance Corporate performance measurement and its field application continues to grow. The diversity and level of performance measures are linked to the goal of the company or the individual strategic business units features. For instance, when measuring performance, organizations have to think about existing financial measures such as return on investment, profitability, market share and revenue growth at a competitive and strategic level. Other measures are more operationally focused, but may inevitably be linked to strategic level measures and issues. This is the case of customer service and inventory performance (supply, turnover). GSCM implementation Where to begin? Viable environmental sustainability programs require meaningful action across a broad range of processes. Some of the most impactful areas include: Production planning: The most valuable members of a supply chain are able to provide accurate forecasts and deliver reliably so as to help reduce over purchasing, over-production and waste Manufacturing: The adoption of techniques such as lean process improvement should result in less over processing as well as reduced energy intensive storage and waste Distribution: Network redesign. Smart routing, backhauling, fill optimization and mode switching à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬  all are likely to result in fewer freight miles Green design: The electronics and related high-tech industries practice collaboration as a means of optimizing the green aspects of their components and end-products; proactive and/or influential members of a supply chain can promote/pursue similar collaboration/ innovation Packaging: The greenest firms seek to minimize the environmental impact of packaging, not only by using less, but also by evaluating the energy, waste, recovery and other life cycle impacts of their packaging choices Recycled content: Companies score green points by maximizing their use. of these materials as well as by using materials in products that are in turn easily recyclable Warehousing: Challenge existing assumptions in light of higher energy costs and the need to reduce carbon footprints Green energy: More green points are available by using green or renewable energy sources à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬  although this can be difficult in regulated energy markets (and a factor in future location decisions) IT: Videoconferencing and remote servicing can reduce business travel; Energy Star rated PCs along with optimized power consumption settings can significantly pare energy costs Server farms: Energy efficient servers arrayed according to state-of-the-art cooling practices can generate enormous energy savings Ridesharing/telecommuting: A growing number of companies are working with municipalities to better optimize public transportation to their facilities. More companies are also enabling more workdays at home as well as providing incentives for carpooling Estates: Investments in building air tightness, insulation and energy efficient heating, cooling, lighting, plant and equipment can significantly reduce carbon footprints Green procurement: It is possible to reduce your carbon footprint by paying more attention to your own procurement. Supplier carbon footprint, ISO certifications, procurement distance have to be part of the selection criterias. Conceptual framework Greening the inbound function It is argued that greening the supply chain has numerous benefits to an organization, ranging from cost reduction, to integrating suppliers in a participative decision-making process that promotes environmental innovation (Bowen et al., 2001; Hall, 1993; Rao, 2002). Critical parts of the inbound function are the purchasing and supply field. Green purchasing strategies are adopted by organizations in response to the increasing global concerns of environmental sustainability. The Green purchasing should be able address reduction of waste produced, material substitution through environmental sourcing of raw materials, and waste minimization of hazardous materials. (Rao Holt, 2005) The involvement and support of suppliers is crucial to achieving such goals. (Vachon and Klassen, 2006). Furthermore, organizations are managing more and more their suppliers environmental performance to ensure that the materials and equipments supplied by them are environmentally-friendly in nature and are produced using environmentally-friendly processes. Min and Galle (1997) explore green purchasing to determine the key factors affecting a buying firms choice of suppliers, the key barriers and the obstacles to green purchasing initiatives. They also investigated the impact of green purchasing on a corporations environmental goals. Below listed subjects to get information on the green inbound phase of a supply chain: (1) Guiding suppliers to set up their own environmental programs; (2) bringing together suppliers in the same industry to share their know-how and problems; (3) informing suppliers about the benefits of cleaner production and technologies; (4) urging/pressuring suppliers to take environmental actions; and (5) choice of suppliers by environmental criteria. Greening the production phase or the internal supply chain In this phase, there are a number of concepts that can be explored, such as cleaner production, design for environment, remanufacturing and lean production. Hong, He-Boong, Jungbae Roh, (2009) highlight through their research that strategic green management needs the combination of integrated product development (IPD) and supply chain coordination (SCC) for desired business outcomes. Thanks to a survey on 580 manufacturing plants in the US, adopting cleaner production techniques, Florida and Davison (2001) showed that green corporations are innovative in their environmental practices, and these strategies emerge from a real commitment towards reducing waste and pollution. Lean production/manufacturing is also an important consideration in reducing the environmental impact of the production phase. In their research King and Lenox (2001), concludes that lean production is complementary to improvements in environmental performance and it often lowers the marginal cost of pollution reduction thus enhancing competitiveness. In addition, Rothenberg et al. (2001) identify that lean plants aim to minimize waste and buffers, leading not only to reduce buffers in environmental technology and management, but also in an overall approach to manufacturing that minimizes waste products. (1) Environment-friendly raw materials; (2) substitution of environmentally questionable materials; (3) taking environmental criteria into consideration; (4) environmental design considerations; (5) optimization of process to reduce solid waste and emissions; (6) use of cleaner technology processes to make savings in energy, water, and waste; (7) internal recycling of materials within the production phase; and (8) incorporating environmental total quality management principles such as worker empowerment. Greening the outbound function On the outbound side of the green supply chain, green logistics comprises all links from the manufacturer to the end users and includes products, processes, packaging, transport, and disposal (Skjoett-Larsen, 2000). Rao, (2003) and Sarkis, (1999) argue on the fact that green marketing, environment-friendly packaging, and environment-friendly distribution, are all initiatives that might improve the environmental performance of an organization and its supply chain. Reverse logistics and waste exchange and ore generally management of wastes in the outbound function can lead to cost savings and enhanced competitiveness (Rao, 2003). In order to address these environmental impacts of packaging, many countries now have programs and legislation that aims to minimize the amount of packaging that enters the waste stream, such as the Packaging Directive in the EU. The distribution, for the whole supply chain is a huge stake for green management. In fact the distribution results of a trade-off between efficiency and effectiveness firm strategy. For this reason is difficult to handle As part of outbound logistics, green marketing has an important part to play in the link between environmental innovation and competitive advantage (Menon and Menon, 1997). Encouraging suppliers to take back packaging is a form of reverse logistics that can be an important consideration in greening the outbound function, with a study by Dorn (1996) identifying an increase in market share amongst companies that implemented an environmentally-friendly packaging scheme. The product design step is more and more integrated within green supply chain issues because 80% of the environmental burden and cost of a product is fixed during this phase (Carbone, Moatti, 2008). Strategic variables to take in account for an empirical study; (1) Environment-friendly waste management; (2) environmental improvement of packaging; (3) taking back packaging; (4) eco-labeling; (5) recovery of companys end-of-life products; (6) providing consumers with information on environmental friendly products and/or production methods; and (7) use of environmentally-friendly transportation. Competitiveness Economic performance Bacallan (2000) suggests that organizations are enhancing their competitiveness through improvements in their environmental performance to comply with mounting environmental regulations, to address the environmental concerns of their customers (à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦). However, an interesting point to notice is that, as long as the market does not seek environmental value-drivers in the products and services it purchases, environmental issues are not necessarily considered by organizations and consumers. (Rao Holt, 2005) Fortunately, over the last few years there has been a growth in environmental awareness of consumers in general. Clearly a growing number of corporations are developing company-wide environmental programs and green products sourced from markets around the world. Therefore, environmental issues are becoming a source of competitiveness. All these efforts aim to improve environmental performance, enhance corporate image, reduce costs, reduce risks of non-compliance and improve marketing advantage. Nevertheless, some organizations are still looking upon green initiatives as involving trade-offs between environmental performance and economic performance. The financial performance of firms is affected by environmental performance in a variety of ways. When waste, both hazardous and non-hazardous, is minimized as part of environmental management, it results in better utilization of natural resources, improved efficiency, higher productivity and reduces operating costs (Rao Holt, 2005). Nowadays and in the future, a good green player could expect to increase its brand image and its market share and then improve its profitability against company without enough green concern while saving costs by innovative processes. To investigate the link between green supply chain management and economic performance we could refers to those key aspects: (1) New market opportunities; (2) product price increase; (3) profit margin;(4) sales; and (5) market share. And competitiveness: (1) Improved efficiency; (2) quality improvement; (3) productivity improvement; and (4) cost savings. Methodology To validate our research, an empirical, survey-based research approach will be taken. Based on the empirical studies through the literature, and a meaningful framework used in the relevant research of Rao Holt in 2005 applied on Asian companies. We choose to follow a common technique to validate the framework presented in the preceding section, a linear SEM (Stochastic Expectation Maximization) approach is used (JÃÆ' ¶reskog and SÃÆ' ¶rbom, 1993) to validate the causal relationships between the different latent constructs of: greening the inbound function; greening production; greening the outbound function; competitiveness and; economic performance. The questionnaire will be distributed to the supply chain managers and/or environmental management representative (EMR) or the chief executive of manufacturing organizations in Western Europe. In order to have both MNCs and SMEs ( Responses will be collected on a four-point and five-point Likert scale, and open-ended questions. The four-point scale served to force the respondents to check either on the negative side or on the positive side. The choice not to focus only on the leading edge ISO14001 accredited organizations (running environmental management) allow us to broader our research and then make a comparison between those without formal environmental management accreditation, and best players accredited. In terms of financial performance, this strategy will be interesting for identifying benefits and again do comparisons. Expected results. As this type of research was already done in South-Est Asia, our results will allow us to compare our findings and trend with those in South-Est Asia. We expect a response of 10%, therefore we will send to a consequent sample to get sufficient and tangible return. We will probably be able to confirm that greening the supply chain also has potential to lead to competitiveness and economic performance. As the current environmental concern in Europe is high, including governmental and customers pressures these research findings would probably show that firms that are greening their supply chains not only achieve substantial cost savings, but also enhance either sales, market share or exploit new market opportunities. The cost aspect will be important to assess as it is directly connected to the overall performance. The main limitation of this research will be probably the small sample of organizations, but the lack of empirical research in Europe will be also one of the main strengths of this paper. Therefore, the findings cannot be generalized to all organizations in this region or around the world. Finally, future research should empirically test the relationships suggested in this paper in different countries, to enable comparative studies. For further research, a larger sample will allow detailed cross-sectoral comparisons and establish international patterns regarding benefits from GSCM. Performance Measurement for Green Supply chain management: Context In supply chains with multiple actors, (vendors manufacturers, distributors and retailers) whether regionally or globally dispersed, it is difficult to attribute performance results to one particular entity within the chain, by the way performance measurement is really challenging. There are difficulties in measuring performance within organizations and even more difficulties arise in inter-organizational environmental performance measurement. The reasons for lack of systems to measure performance across organizations are multidimensional, including non-standardized data, poor technological integration, geographical and cultural differences, differences in organizational policy, lack of agreed upon metrics, or poor understanding of the need for inter-organizational performance measurement. (Hervani, A. Helms, M. Sarkis, J., 2005) Performance measurement in supply chains is difficult for additional reasons, especially when looking at numerous tiers within a supply chain, and green supply chain management performance measurement, or GSCM/PM, is virtually non-existent. With these barriers and difficulties in mind, GSCM/PM is needed for a number of reasons (including regulatory, marketing and competitiveness reasons). Overcoming these barriers is not a trivial issue, but the long-term sustainability (environmental and otherwise) and competitiveness of organizations may rely on successful adoption of GSCM/PM. The basic purposes of GSCM/PM are: external reporting (economic rent), internal control (managing the business better) and internal analysis (understanding the business better and continuous improvement). These are the fundamental issues that drive the development of frameworks for business performance measurement. It is important to consider both purpose, as well as the interrelationships of these various measurements. Supply chain management Supply chain management is the coordination and management of a complex network of activities involved in delivering a finished product to the end-user or customer. It is a vital business function and the process includes sourcing raw materials and parts, manufacturing and assembling products, storage, order entry and tracking, distribution through the various channels and finally delivery to the customer. A companys supply chain structure consists of external suppliers, internal functions of the company, and external distributors, as well as customers (commercial or end-user). Firms may be members of multiple supply chains simultaneously. The management and coordination is further complicated by global players spread across geographic boundaries and multiple time zones. The successful management of a supply chain is also influenced by customer expectations, globalization, information technology, government regulation, competition and the environment. Performance management and measurement Corporate performance measurement and its application continue to grow and encompass both quantitative and qualitative measurements and approaches. The variety and level of performance measures depends greatly on the goal of the organization or the individual strategic business units characteristics. For example, when measuring performance, companies must consider existing financial measures such as return on investment, profitability, market share and revenue growth at a more competitive and strategic level. Other measures such as customer service and inventory performance (supply, turnover) are more operationally focused, but may necessarily be linked to strategic level measures and issues. Overall, these difficulties in developing standards for performance measurement are traced to the various measurement taxonomies. Example taxonomic considerations include: management level to measure à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" strategic, tactical, or operational; tangible versus intangible measures; variations in collection and reporting; an organizations location along the supply chain or functional differentiation within organizations (e.g. accounting, versus marketing or operations). Similar to the performance measurement used, the performance measurement system may be unique to each individual organization, or unit within an organization, reflecting its fundamental purpose and its environment. Several studies have investigated the universal principles of performance measurement (Adams et al., 1995; Gunasekaran et al., 2001; Sink and Tuttle, 1990). These studies arrived at a number of conclus

Total Quality Management Essay -- GCSE Business Marketing Coursework E

Total Quality Management The emergence of the global marketplace demands that a company act on a global scale to be competitive. Competing on this level requires that a company provide a superior product and superior service. Companies desiring to achieve international quality status now have a manufacturing, quality control, and documentation standard in which to strive. ISO 9000 is the implemented international process management baseline for which all participating organizations will adhere. Standardization appears to be the key to survival in today's domestic and international marketplace. Consumers and businesses alike demand the assurances that the products they purchase from one company are equal in quality to the product they purchase from another. Consumers also demand that every product they purchase from a particular company meet the same specifications as the next. The key to developing this uniformity of standards and quality among and within companies is to establish a set of closely monitored procedures to be followed by all. The focus on the ISO 9000 and ISO 9001 standard is not on manufactured products, but the process implemented to achieve that product. By certifying a manufacturing and documentation process with the Geneva based International Organization for Standardization, registered companies have realized a dramatic decline in customer complaints and significant reductions in operating costs. This is due to the required certification process. By successfully completing the ISO 9000-registration process, companies can identify and correct processes that are costly and unproductive. This is simply good for business. Additionally, ISO 9000 registered companies, critical of their ISO registered product, demand that their suppliers be ISO 9000 registered. The ISO 9000 series consist of five standards that fall into two categories. The five standards are ISO 9000-1, ISO 9001, ISO 9002, ISO 9003, and ISO 9000-4. The two categories provide for contractual situations and non-contractual situations. Contractual elements (ISO 9001, ISO 9002, and IO 9003) have been developed for external quality assurance. Meeting these standards indicate to a customer that a company's quality assurance program is capable of providing a quality product or service. Non-contractual elements, ISO 9000-1 and ISO 9004-1, used as gui... ...ocess are not what were intended. Employee involvement is crucial. As a process is implemented company wide, employee at all levels will be effected. Their confidence in management and belief that the process will improve all aspects of their position is required if they are to be productive and play a part in the implementation process. Standardization is necessary in today's global marketplace. Consumers demand better quality products and the assurances that these products are well supported. The standardization of processes and systems is necessary if industry is to meet the consumers' requirements. Developing uniformity among industry is necessary to developing this higher quality standard. Companies not responding to this trend are subject to lost revenues and business failure to their ISO 9000 compliant counterparts. References Larson, J. (1999, April 21). ISO certification not just for majors. Arizona Republic, p. E2. Peach, Robert W. (1997). The ISO 9000 handbook. New York: McGraw-Hill (1999). The NASA ISO 9000 home page [Online]. Available: http://iso9000.nasa.gov/ (1999). Welcome to ISO easy [Online]. Available: http://www.isoeasy.org/

Analysis of Joyce Carol Oates Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? :: Joyce Carol Diabolical Symbols Essays

Analysis of Joyce Carol Oates' Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? In Joyce Carol Oates' â€Å"Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?† critics argue whether the character of Arnold Friend, clearly the story's antagonist, represents Satan in the story. Indeed, Arnold Friend is an allegorical devil figure for the main reason that he tempts Connie, the protagonist, into riding off with him in his car. Oates characterizes Arnold Friend at first glance as â€Å"a boy with shaggy, black hair, in a convertible jalopy painted gold†(581). She lets the reader know that Arnold is not a teenager when Connie begins to notice the features such as the painted eyelashes, his shaggy hair which looked like a wig, and his stuffed boots; these features led her to believe he was not a teenager, but in fact, much older. Oates does make Arnold out to be a psychopathic stalker, but never objectively states the diabolical nature to his character. In â€Å"Connie's Tambourine Man†, a critical essay on the story, the authors write about Arnold Friend: â€Å"There are indeed diabolical shades to Arnold just as Blake and Shelley could see Milton's Satan a positive, attractive symbol of the poet, the religious embodiment of creative energy, so we should also be sensitive to Arnold's multifaceted and creative nature†(Tierce and Crafton 608). Mike Tierce and John Michael Crafton suggest that Arnold Friend is not a diabolical figure, but instead a religious and cultural savior. On a more realistic note, Joyce M. Wegs argues the symbolism of Arnold Friend as a Satan figure when she writes: â€Å"Arnold is far more a grotesque portrait of a psychopathic killer masquerading as a teenager; he also has all the traditional, sinister traits of that arch deceiver and source of grotesque terror, the devil†(616). She also writes about how the author sets up the idea of a religious, diabolical figure when she links popular music and its values as Connie's perverted version of a religion. Another hint is Arnold's almost supernatural, mysterious knowledge about Connie, her family and her friends(Wegs 617). The main reason why the reader would extract this diabolical symbol from reading the story is that Arnold's character bears striking resemblance to Satan's. At the drive-in, Arnold is warning Connie of his coming when he wags his finger at her and says â€Å"Gonna get you, baby†(Oates 581). The majority of the story is Arnold tempting Connie to leave the safe haven that is her home and

Models and Theories Essay

New technological advances have changed the way organizations are preparing for the future. Management must focus on the human implications resulting from the implementation of new technology and be prepared for resistance and human implications resulting from technological changes. The way management prepares for the change can create a smooth transition or failure. Many theories and models for change have been created to help this transition. Choosing the right model or theory for your work place depends on the type of organization. Although you do not know how the workforce will react to the change, it is important to implement a strategy that will help foster the change. Many factors needed to be weighed to implement a successful change strategy. Management needs to look at the organizational culture, the challenges of implementing the change and the tactics they will use to overcome resistance of the change. There are many different models and theories involving change management. The first model is appreciative inquiry. â€Å"Appreciative inquiry is a form of action research that attempts to create new theories, ideas and images that aid in the developmental change of a system (Bushe, Gervase, 2001). † Appreciative inquiry is a collection of people’s positive experiences and tries to find ways to emulate them. A disadvantage to appreciative inquiry is that there is no set way of collecting data. â€Å". The basic process of appreciative inquiry is to begin with a grounded observation of the â€Å"best of what is†, then through vision and logic collaboratively articulate â€Å"what might be†, ensuring the consent of those in the system to â€Å"what should be† and collectively experimenting with â€Å"what can be (Cooperrider & Srivastya, 1990)†. An advantage to appreciative inquiry is that organizations can build from previous positive experiences. This method also promotes group cohesiveness and bonding over shared experiences. The open-systems theory is a model that seeks to omprehend the interdependencies between the organization and its environment. â€Å"To conceptualize an organization as an open system is to emphasize the importance of its environment, upon which the maintenance, survival, and growth of an open system depend. A systems approach to organizations begins with the postulate that they are open systems which, of necessity, engage in various modes of exchange with their environment (Katz and Kahn, 1966)†. The open-systems method developed by Bertalanffy in 1956, uses action plans and problem solving techniques. Considering the task elements involved for groups, collective efficiency perceptions of groups may influence their effectiveness (Gibson, 1999). Leaders in an organizational change will face many different kinds of resistance. These changes arise from perceived threats and changing of their normal work routine. According to Lewins force field analysis, â€Å" an issue is held in balance by the interaction of two opposing sets of forces, those seeking the change and those attempting to maintain the status quo; the resisting forces† (Lewin, Kurt). The change model by Beckhard, states, â€Å"employee involvement is essential in understanding the connection between employee empowerment and organizational success†. The three components of overcoming resistance in this method are dissatisfaction with the current situation, vision of the future, and achievable steps to reaching this vision. The catastrophe theory looks at change in a mathematical formula. The catastrophe theory states that once an organization is out of its stable or preferred state there is no continuous way back.

Josephs story Essay

B.Assuming Josephs heart stopped, what cellular processes and membrane functions are going to be affected by loss of oxygen, blood glucose, and waste removal? Joseph’s blood pressure got so high due to the vessels being blocked with plaque, therefore circulation of blood has been blocked and it can no longer receive the nutrients required for it to pump. The body can’t breakdown glucose to make energy, and the increase in CO2 lowers the pH. Active transport on the plasma membrane stops which also stops ATP, and sodium and potassium start to leak out destroying the chemical gradient. C.What intracellular organelles have membranes as part of their structures? How would the breakdown of the membranes of these structures affect the function of josephs heart cells? Endoplasmic reticulum, the Golgi complex, the mitochondria and the lysosomes all have membranes in their structure. Whenever calcium levels rose to high the heart went in to a prolonged contraction, the lysosomes usually in the vesicles start to destroy its own membranes. D.Two important pieces of information-instructions josephs body needs to repair itself and his predisposition for vascular disease- are both contained within the cell on which structures? The instructions and information are in the mitochondrial DNA, the body needs this information along with a blood supply to create new cells. Mitochondria contains its own DNA and genes so it can replicate. E.Joseph’s heart attack has caused the function of his cells to change. What types of proteins in the cell membrane were involved in the homeostatic imbalances of his heart cells? Without ATP the sodium potassium ion channels can’t operate. The heart can’t contract properly. Increased Calcium sent the heart in to a prolonged contraction, it convulsed recklessly. F.Why was reestablishing oxygen flow to Joseph’s body so important? What  processes would be affected by lack of oxygen? Without oxygen everything stops. Everything in the body requires oxygen. That’s why breathing is important and involuntary. Without oxygen we can’t the body can’t create ATP, ATP is required for all processes. When Joseph was administered oxygen and given chest compressions he was able to get rid of CO2 which started bringing the pH back to normal and the body was able to make more ATP. H.Explain why josephs heart failed based on what you have learned so far about the function of the cells in the human body. It was caused from a number of things. Hypertension, atherosclerosis, poor diet, lack of exercise. All of these things cause heart disease. Also build of plaque blocks blood flow which increase pressure and eventually it has nowhere to go. Something’s got to give eventually when the body can’t circulate blood quick enough.

Accounting Users And Characteristics Of Financial Statement Accounting Essay

1.0 IntroductionSai Kim, T. et al. , 2001, pg 1, said that â€Å" accounting is the procedure of recording, coverage, and construing fiscal information pertaining to an organisation. Accounting is frequently baffled with book-keeping, which involves merely the recording of economic events and is hence merely one portion of the accounting procedure † . Undertaking 1 is about the different users and their demands for Continental Limited fiscal statements. Accounting users divided into two users, it is internal users ( people within the organisation ) and besides external users ( people outside the organisation ) who use history to deduce fiscal information for their demands. Besides that, the features of these fiscal statements will supply utile information to the users. Continental Limited has an authorized portion capital of 1 million ordinary portions RM1 each. It operates sweeping and retail concern of selling a consumers merchandise. In undertaking 2, prepare the income statement and balance sheet of Continental Limited for twelvemonth stoping 31 Dec 2010 for the internal usage by company manager or publication. Income statement it is made by company at the terminal of each twelvemonth to cipher the net income and loss incurred in concern during the twelvemonth. While, balance sheet it is made by company at the terminal of each twelvemonth to enter the capital, assets, and liabilities of company at the terminal of the twelvemonth. In undertaking 3, prepare the income statement and balance sheet of Continental Limited for twelvemonth stoping 31 Dec 2010 in the recognized format for external coverage or publication. Distribution cost normally defined as the costs incurred to present the merchandise from the production unit to the terminal user. Besides that, administrative disbursals is refer to the costs of runing a concern that are non straight attributable to the production of goods or services. In undertaking 4, must establish on the income statement and balance sheet made in undertaking 2 and 3. Then, cipher the appropriate accounting rations for twelvemonth stoping 31 Dec 2010 and besides necessitate to compare them with the industry norms provided to measure the profitableness and liquidness of Continental Limited.2.0 Accounting users and Features of fiscal statementAccounting information helps users to do better fiscal determinations in the organisation. There have two different types of users in the fiscal information, there are internal users ( people within the organisation such as direction, employees, and proprietors ) and besides external users ( people outside the organisation such as creditor, revenue enhancement governments, investors, and clients ) who use history to deduce fiscal information for their demands. There besides have five regulative features of fiscal statement that will supply utile information to the users. These standards must be fulfilled to do the fiscal statements and histories that are utile to the users. Therefore, company should seek to fulfill the undermentioned standards when choosing and following the accounting constructs in fixing concern fiscal histories.2.1 Accounting usersThere have five different users and their demand for Continental Limited fiscal statements. The fiscal histories supply a wealth of information that is utile to assorted users of fiscal information. Investor is worried about hazard and return in relation to their investings. They need accounting information to cognize whether it is deserving for them to put in a concern or purchasing portions of the company. In add-on, client and debitor are the people who purchase goods and services provided by the company. They need accounting information about the company ‘s fiscal stableness to guarantee that the company is a unafraid beginning of supply and no danger of holding to shut down. As a clients of the company ‘s merchandises, they have a long-run concentration in the company ‘s scope of the merchandises and services. They may even hold to depend on the concern for certain merchandises and services. Besides that, a director is the individual appointed by the company proprietors to responsible for planning and directing the work of a group of persons, supervising the daily work of the company. They need accounting information about the company ‘s fiscal state of affairs as it is presently and as it is expected to be the hereafter to enable them to pull off the concern expeditiously and to do effectual control and planning determinations. Another accounting user is providers or creditor, the people who provide merchandising goods and services to the company on recognition. So, they need accounting information about the company ‘s ability to pay its debts for guaranting their aggregation from the company. The creditors include providers every bit good as loaners of the finance such as Bankss. Furthermore, employee of the company is people employed by the company to transport out concern activities. Therefore, they need accounting information about the company ‘s fiscal state of affairs. This is because, their future callings and the size of their rewards and wages depend on it. Therefore, employees need information refering the stableness and go oning profitableness of the organisation. In the decision, accounting users is of import to the organisation. This is because, the fiscal histories supply information that is utile to assorted users of fiscal information.2.2 Features of fiscal statementFirst is understandability, it means that the fiscal statements must easy to comprehensible. Users of fiscal statements are assumed to hold adequate cognition of concern, economic activities and accounting to analyze the information decently. Harmonizing to Helium.com ( 2010 ) , said that â€Å" understandability ensures that a user equipped with the basic cognition can spot information refering to the public presentation and fiscal place of an endeavor † . Besides that, the feature of the fiscal statement is comparison. The fiscal histories made based on accounting constructs should be comparable within the entity and across entities. Comparability within the entity is means that the fiscal statements can be compared with the old twelvemonth fiscal statements of the same company. While, comparison across entities is means the fiscal statement can be comparable with the history of other company. Another feature of the fiscal statement is relevancy. The fiscal histories prepared based on accounting constructs and policies should show relevant fiscal information which is capable of act uponing the economic determination of the users. Therefore, fiscal statements are for users to do economic determinations, the information must be relevant to the determinations that those users have to do. In add-on, relevant fiscal statements are seasonably, if the histories are prepared to supply required information in clip, it is relevant to the determination devising of the user. Contrary, if the histories are no prepared to supply information in clip, it is non relevant to the determination devising of the user. Furthermore, the feature of fiscal statement is dependability. Fiscal history must show dependable information to the users for determination devising. Harmonizing to SpiffyD ( 2012 ) , reference that â€Å" harmonizing to ACCA, â€Å" dependable † information does non incorporate mistakes that affect the economic determinations of users, nor is it biased or partial. This property is linked to faithful representation, since users should be able to handle with it as such. Users have assurance in dependable fiscal statements. Such statements are non misdirecting or intentionally constructed in a mode that could skew determinations or perceptual experience of the fiscal place or public presentation of an entity. It is deserving observing that the importance of auditing is increasing because it reinforces dependability † . In add-on, the feature of the fiscal statement is accuracy. The fiscal history must supply accurate fiscal information to the users for determination devising. The ground is, the inaccurate history information will take to inaccurate determination made by the user.3.0 Income Statement and Balance SheetIncome statement it is made by company at the terminal of each twelvemonth to cipher the net income and loss incurred in concern during the twelvemonth. Harmonizing to Steven Mark, L. , 2003, pg 25, he said that â€Å" the income statement besides referred to as a profit-and-loss statement, summarizes the company ‘s grosss, disbursals, additions, and losingss for a period of clip, such as three months or one twelvemonth † . While balance sheet it is made by company at the terminal of each twelvemonth to enter the capital, assets, and liabilities of company at the terminal of the twelvemonth.3.1 Working for note inquiry a to hClosing stock should be recorded at cost or net r esale value which one is lower. Since cost RM65000 & lt ; net resale value RM70000, the cost RM65000 should be shuting stock value put in the trading history of income statement and under the current plus in balance sheet. Cash Account RM RM Gross saless 5000 Purchase 4000 Stationery 700 Electricity 300 5000 5000 Gross saless in trading history of income statement = RM360000 from TB + RM5000 = RM365000 Purchase in merchandising history of income statement = RM200000 from TB + RM 4000 = RM 204000 Stationery as disbursal put in P/L history of income statement = RM7000 from TB + RM300 = RM7300 Gross saless committee as disbursal put in P/L history of income statement = RM18000 paid from TB + RM1500 accrued at terminal of twelvemonth = RM 19500 Then, accrued gross revenues committee RM1500 is recorded under the current liability in balance sheet Office wages as disbursal put in P/L history of income statement = RM28000 paid from TB – RM 2000 prepaid at terminal of twelvemonth = RM26000 Then, prepaid office wage RM2000 is recorded under the current plus in balance sheet Debtor Account RM RM Balance b/d 75000 ( – ) Bad debts 5000 Balance c/d 70000 75000 75000 Balance b/d 70000 Bad Debts Account RM RM Debtor 5000 P/L history 5000 ( Bad debts as disbursal put in P/L history ) Provision for bad debts shuting balance = 10 % ten Debtor shutting balance RM70000 = RM7000 Provision for Bad Debts Account RM RM 31 Dec 2010 Closing balance c/d 7000 1 Jan 2010 Opening balance b/d 5000 Increase different 2000 ( As disbursal put in P/L history ) 7000 7000 1 Jan 2010 Balance b/d 7000 and degree Fahrenheit ) Vehicles Account RM RM Balance b/d 300000 Vehicles Account a/c ( cost sold ) 50000 Balance c/d 250000 300000 300000 Balance b/d 250000 Provision for Depreciation on Vehicle Account RM RM Vehicle disposal history 12500 1 Jan 2010 Opening balance b/d 60000 ( Cost sold RM50000 x 5 % x 5 twelvemonth from 1 Jan 2005 to 1 Jan 2010 ) 31 Dec 2010 Balance c/d 60000 Depreciation as disbursal put in P/L 12500 history ( Vehicles shuting balance RM250000 x 5 % ) 72500 72500 1 Jan 2011 Balance b/d 60000 Vehicle Disposal Account RM RM Vehicle cost sold 50000 Provision for depreciation on 12500 vehicle sold Returns from disposal of vehicle 35000 Difference for Loss on disposal of 2500 vehicle ( As disbursal put in P/L history ) 50000 50000 Provision for Depreciation on Premises Account RM RM Balance c/d 5400 1 Jan 2010 Opening balance b/d 40000 Depreciation as disbursal put in 14000 P/L history ( Premisess cost from TB RM350000 x 4 % ) 54000 54000 Balance b/d 54000 g ) Taxation charge RM15300 is deducted from net net income at the underside of income statement. It is besides recorded as accumulated revenue enhancement RM15300 under current liability in balance sheet H ) Proposed divided to be deducted from net net income at the underside of income statement = 2 % x RM500000 Share capital from TB = RM 10000 Then, the proposed divided RM10000 is recorded under current liability in balance sheet.3.2 Income statement of Continental Limited for twelvemonth stoping 31 Dec 2010 for internal usageIncome Statement of Continental Limited for Year Ending 31 Dec 2010 for Internal Use RM RM RM Gross saless 365000 Less Return inwards 10000 Net gross revenues 355000 Less Cost of gross revenues: Opening stock 50000 + Purchases 204000 – Tax return outwards 15000 + Carriage inwards 5000 194000 Less Closing stock 65000 179000 Gross net income 176000 Add Income: Dividend received 5000 181000 Less Expense: Stationery 700 Office electricity & A ; H2O 7300 Office salaries 26000 Gross saless committee 19500 Bad debts 5000 Addition in proviso for bad debts 2000 Loss on disposal of vehicle 2500 Depreciation on vehicles 12500 Depreciation on premises 14000 Vehicle expense 12000 Interest charges 3000 104500 Net net income 76500 Less Taxation charge 15300 Less Proposed dividend 10000 Net income for the twelvemonth 51200 Add Retained net incomes brought frontward 100000 Retained net incomes carried frontward 1512003.3 Balance sheet of Continental Limited as at 31 Dec 2010 for internal usageBalance Sheet of Continental Limited as at 31 Dec 2010 for Internal Use RM RM Fixed assets / Non-current assets Office premises at cost 350000 ( – ) Provision for depreciation on premises 54000 296000 Vehicle at cost 250000 ( – ) Provision for depreciation on vehicle 60000 190000 Long-run investings 100000 586000 Current assets Closing stock 65000 Debtors 70000 ( – ) Provision for bad debts 7000 63000 Bank 42000 Prepaid office wage 2000 172000 758000 Issued portion capital Share capital 500000 Add Reserve Retained net incomes carried frontward 151200 Stockholders ‘ equity 6512000 Add Long-term liabilities / Non-current liability Loan 55000 Add Current liabilities Creditors 25000 Accrued gross revenues committee 1500 Accrued revenue enhancement 15300 Proposed divided 10000 51800 7580004.0 Distribution costs and Administrative disbursalsDistribution costs besides known as distribution disbursals. Distribution cost normally defined as the costs incurred to present the merchandise from the production unit to the terminal user. The distribution cost is points such as gross revenues staff ‘s wages and committee, passenger car outwards, depreciation of bringing new waves, advertisement and show disbursals. Harmonizing to Readyratios.com ( 2011 ) , reference that â€Å" administrative disbursals refer to the costs of runing a concern that are non straight attributable to the production of goods or services. Administrative disbursals are related to the organisation as a whole as opposed to the single sections † . Administrative disbursals consist of such points as wages, legal and accounting charges, the depreciation of accounting machinery, public-service corporations, rent, and housework charges.4.1 Classify the disbursals into distribution cost and administrative disbursalsDistribution costs Administrative disbursals RM RM Stationery – 700 Office electricity – 7300 Office salaries – 26000 Gross saless committee 19500 – Bad debts 5000 – Addition in proviso for bad debts 2000 – Loss on disposal of vehicle 2500 – Depreciation on vehicle 12500 – Depreciation on premises – 14000 Vehicle disbursals 12000 – Entire 53500 480004.2 Income statement of Continental Limited for twelvemonth stoping 31 Dec 2010 for external coverageIncome Statement of Continental Limited for Year Ending 31 Dec 2010 for External Reporting RM RM Employee turnover 355000 Cost of gross revenues 179000 Gross net income 176000 Distribution cost 53500 Administrative disbursals 48000 101500 Operating net income 74500 Dividend received 5000 79500 Interest charges 3000 Net income on ordinary activities before revenue enhancement 76500 Taxation charge 15300 Net income on ordinary activities after revenue enhancement for the twelvemonth 61200 Proposed dividend 10000 Retained net income for the twelvemonth 51200 Retained net income bought frontward 100000 Retained net income carried frontward 1512004.3 Balance sheet of Continental Limited for the twelvemonth stoping 31 Dec 2010 for external coverageBalance Sheet of Continental Limited for the Year Ending 31 Dec 2010 for External Reporting RM RM RM Fixed Assetss Tangible Assetss: Premisess 296000 Vehicle 190000 486000 Investing: Long term investing 100000 586000 Current Assetss Stock 65000 Debtors 63000 Prepaid office wage 2000 130000 Cash at bank 42000 172000 Less Creditors: Sums Falling Due Within One Year Creditor 25000 Accrued gross revenues committee 1500 Accrued revenue enhancement 15300 Proposed dividend 10000 ( 51800 ) Net current Assetss 120200 Entire Assets Less Current Liabilities 706200 Less Creditor: Sums Falling Due After More Than One Year Loan ( 55000 ) 651200 Capital and Reserve Called up portion capital 500000 Net income and Loss history 151200 6512005.0 Accounting ratiosAccounting ratios is used to specify of import relationship between the figures shown on a balance sheet, in a net income and loss history or in any other portion of accounting organisation. Therefore, accounting ratios shows the relationship between accounting informations.5.1 Table of ratio computationRatio with expression Ratio computation for twelvemonth 2010 Industry norm Percentage of gross net income on gross revenues = Gross net income x 100 176000 ten 100 = 49.58 % 30 % Net gross revenues 355000 Percentage of operating net income on gross revenues = Operating net income x 100 74500 ten 100 = 20.99 % 18 % Net gross revenues 355000 Capital employed = Closing capital + Long-term liabilities = ( Fixed assets + Current assets ) -Current liabilities = ( RM586000+RM172000 ) -RM51800 = RM758000-RM51800 = RM706200 Tax return on capital employed ( ROCE ) = ( Net net income + Interest charges ) x 100 76500 + 3000 x 100 9 % Entire assets – Current liabilities 758000 – 51800 = 79500 tens 100 706200 = 11.26 % Current ratio = Current assets = 172000 2: 1 Current liabilities 51800 = 3.32: 1 Stock turnover = Cost of gross revenues Average stock value = Cost of gross revenues = 179000 ( Opening stock + Closing stock ) / 2 ( 50000 + 65000 ) / 2 = 179000 57500 =3.11times Stock turnover period 365 yearss = 365 yearss 90 yearss Stock turnover 3.11 times = 117.36 yearss Debtor aggregation period = Debtor = RM63000 Net recognition gross revenues RM365000 – RM 10000 = Debtor = RM63000 Gross saless – return inwards RM355000 = 0.1777: 1 Debtors collection period = Debtor ratio x 365 yearss =0.177 x 365 yearss 45 yearss =64.6 yearss Creditor ratio = Creditor = 25000 Net recognition purchase 204000 – 15000 = Credit = 25000 Purchase – Tax return outwards 189000 = 0.132: 1 Creditors payment period = Creditor ratio x 365 yearss = 0.132 ten 365 yearss 60 yearss = 48.18 yearss5.2 Profitableness of Continental LimitedThe per centums of gross net income on gross revenues is 49.58 % is higher than industry norm is 30 % because the company is uneffective and inefficient in buying goods and services from the providers doing higher purchase cost and besides uneffective usage of stuff and labor causation higher production cost to diminish gross net income. In add-on, per centum of operating net income on gross revenues is 20.99 % and industry norm is 18 % . Higher per centum of operating net income on gross revenues indicates that company is uneffective in its outgo control. Besides that, ROCE besides higher than industry norm is 20.99 % and 18 % . This is because, it is bespeaking the lower net net income generated in relation to the capital employed.5.3 Liquid of Continental LimitedCurrent ratio of company is higher than industry norm is 3.32: 1 and 2: 1which is much that the thought ratio of 2: 1, the current ratio is higher or equal to 2: 1, th e larger sum of current assets can be used to finance current liabilities, bespeaking that company is financially stable and able to finance its short-run debts. Furthermore, the stock turnover period is higher than the industry norm is 117.36 yearss and 90 yearss. The higher stock turnover period indicate fast stock turnover in concern where the goods and services purchased are kept in stock for a short clip and the fast stock for short clip and so fast taken out from stock for resale. In add-on, debitor aggregation period is higher than industry norm is 64.6 yearss and 45 yearss. Higher of debitor aggregation period indicate that company has given longer recognition clip to let debitor ‘s owing, causation, longer clip taken by company to roll up money. While, the creditor payment period is lower than industry norm is 48.18 yearss and 60 yearss. The lower creditor payment period show that company has obtained shorter recognition clip for having and paying creditors.6.0 Conclu sion and RecommendationIn the decision, making this rule of accounting assignment I have learnt a batch of cognition about the rule of history. I already know the different types of accounting users and besides the features of the fiscal statement. Besides that, making this assignment besides has larn how to fix the income statement and balance sheet. The benefit I get from this assignment is larning accounting will assist us to makes concern or personal fiscal determinations. Another benefit is accounting cognition will assist us to understand the significance of the fiscal information.

Wounds, Meds and Complex Care in Nursing Practice

1. The preoperative checklist on what needs to be done to take care of a patient can be found on the patient’s chart, usually under the doctor’s orders and/or the patient’s notes. 2. The National Institute for Clinical Excellence recommends that blood tests should be taken prior to having a surgery regardless of patient’s healthy condition, unless contraindicated. This is done to provide information about conditions that could affect the treatment that a patient would need (Lab Tests Online, 2004). Blood tests to be included in this routine preoperative testing are a full blood count, blood clotting tests, blood typing, blood gasses, blood glucose, and a sickle cell test (Lab Tests Online, 2004). A full blood count will measure haemoglobin and the number of other types of cells in the blood (Lab Tests Online, 2004). Blood typing is for blood transfusion, in case needed. Blood clotting test to determine if blood clots normally and how long it takes to clot (Lab Tests Online, 2004). Blood gasses, measures the amount of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood, as well as its acidity, and blood glucose to check for diabetes. Sickle cell testing if the patient has risk factors. 3. The registered nurse is responsible for reporting any discrepancies in the lab results of the patient to the physician in charge. 4. Preoperative education should include orienting the patient with the surgery that she is going to go through. Ask what she understood from the physician and answer her questions for further clarification. Afterwards, explain the patient what to expect during her recovery period, and what are her postoperative exercises. Also, enlighten the patient on the risks of post-op recovery like pulmonary embolus, DVT and UTI, and the possible ways on how to avoid these, through deep breathing exercises and wearing of anti-embolic stockings (University of South Australia, 2000). Finally, inform her of what other procedures are to be done after the surgery, for example, utilization of catheters and IV therapy. 5. A preoperative shower employs the use of a 2% chlorhexidine gluconate polyester cloth in scrubbing the patient’s body as a preventive preparation aimed at reducing the patient's skin colonization before the incision is made (Bjerke, 2001). . The anaesthesiologist is the one to administer the anaesthesia. 7. A general anaesthesia will make Mary unaware of what is happening during the operation, it will make her not feel anything, it will even put her to sleep (Rashiq, 2007). Penthidine is the analgesic of choice postoperative; to not feel pain (JBC Handbook, 1997). 8. An epidural anaesthesia is called an epidural block and requires the injection of anaesthetics in the epidural membrane that surrounds the spinal cord (Sarafino, 2006). Epidural blocks are most commonly administered during labour and delivery (American Pregnancy Association, 2007). . Marking the legs preoperative is done traditionally by estimating the position of the hip joint by palpation of the greater trochanter (The, 2006). 10. Epidural infection, nerve damage, backache, headache and urinary retention (Faure, 2000). 11. a. Ensure patient’s tag is the same with her chart. b. make sure patient is not wearing any metals, jewelleries, etc. c. ensure is certain about undergoing the operation d. ensure that patient has gone through all the necessary diagnostic tests e. ensure that patient is still on NPO. 12. The patient’s chart, diagnostic test results, patient’s consent. 13. Vital sign assessment has to be done every 15 minutes for the first hour and special attention will be brought to the patient’s respiration, due to the anaesthesia, and circulation and sensation of the extremities especially in the affected areas. Output is also monitored. Patient still on NPO until anaesthesia wears off totally. 14. No, this is a common postoperative effect. Continue monitoring output. 15. Decrease in urine output is common postoperative due to opioid drugs, immobility, and decreased oral intake (Merck, 2005). The physician may order Crede’s manoeuvre to be implemented and Betanechol can be administered (Merck, 2005). 6. Neurovascular checks are important to determine if there was nerve damage or internal bleeding and a circulation problem, or even infection, which could have been caused by the surgery. The neurovascular check is comprised of the five P’s, namely pain, paralysis, paraesthesia, pulses, and pallor (Judge, 2007). Check for thes e in the patient’s limbs. 17. Loss of pedal pulses might mean lack of arterial flow (Judge, 2007). This should be reported immediately to the registered nurse or the physician, whoever is readily available. 18. Any deviation from the normal baseline data regarding neurovascular checks should be reported immediately to the physician to avoid amputation of the affected extremity. 19. Log roll patient with abductor hip in place. To prepare the patient, she should be placed on one side of the bed, and rolled like a log to the unaffected side of the hip replacement. 20. A postoperative wash will make the patient feel comfortable and refreshed, also it will minimize infection. 21. Her pain might increase or decrease and this can signal a change in the source of pain. Also, the narcotic’s infusion rate can be changed if pain is lessened. 2. Two or more nurses to ensure that the correct rate is delivered. 23. As a student nurse, I cannot change infusion rates for narcotic pain relievers because I do not have the license yet that will make me accountable for any unpleasant consequence that might arise from the situation. Even under the watchful eye of my instructor, I cannot do it. 24. Na rcotics have to be watched for their side effects, especially respiratory depression. Observations that can be noted when a patient is with a narcotics infusion include clients respiratory rate, confusion and drowsiness (BP Cancer Agency, 2008). 5. Heparin injections are administered as a prophylaxis for blood clots (Science News, 1988). 26. Bleeding can be a complication of heparin use because it prevents clotting. Be wary of the following signs: black, tarry stools and bleeding from gums when brushing or flossing teeth, continued redness or pain after an injection, nosebleeds, red urine, unusual bruising coughing up blood (Drug Information Online, 2008). 27. Positive nitrate may indicate bacterial contamination, and traces of protein and blood are not alarming (Eccles Health Sciences Library, 2008). 28. Yes. This is because catheter removal will help in eradicating any possible bacterial contamination. 29. A urine specimen should be sent for a culture and sensitivity test to determine what bacteria is infecting the patient’s urinary tract. Sample should be sent to the laboratory immediately. 30. The needed equipment shall be gathered. After washing one’s hands and explaining to the patient what procedure is to be done and what the rationale behind it is, the drainage tubing directly below the aspiration port will be clamped with a rubber band or clamp (Integrated Publishing, 2007). This is to ensure that an adequate amount of urine for a specimen can be taken. A syringe will be used to aspirate the urine specimen. After gathering enough urine, the clamp shall be removed. 31. Inserting an indwelling catheter requires that the equipment needed be gathered first. Then the procedure is to be explained to the patient. She should be placed in a dorsal recumbent position. Using the sterile technique, the patient should be draped with sterile dressings. Sterile gloves will then be worn. Catheter tip is to be lubricated and placed on the sterile catheter tray. The labia are to be separated with the thumb and forefinger and a swipe of a swab with sterile povidone-iodine shall be done from the meatus toward the rectum. This shall be done thrice discarding each swab after one swipe. Catheter is to be inserted two to three inches into the urethra, and an additional inch once there is urine flowing. Balloon will be inflated once it is inside the bladder. Traction is gently applied to the catheter and drainage is taped to Mary’s thigh. (Kaplan, 2007) 32. To remove an indwelling catheter, a small syringe is attached to the inflation port on the side of the catheter and all the fluid is drawn out (Moore et al, 2007). Afterwards, slowly pull the catheter out (Moore et al, 2007). 33. Patients are on strict monitoring of fluid balance because they are receiving fluids through their IV therapies and postoperative patients are still weaning off from their anaesthesia, making urine retention a side effect. A positive fluid balance occurs when intake is greater than output, and a negative fluid balance happens when intake is lesser than output. 34. Fluid overload can bring about fluid and electrolyte imbalance, dysrhythmia, high blood pressure, non-pitting oedema, diarrhoea, projectile vomiting, among many others (Williams, 2008). Osmotic diuretics can be administered per doctor’s orders, patient should be on strict I&O, IV fluids should be checked hourly, fluids should be restricted (Williams, 2008). 35. The medications should also be reflected on the output of Mary if it is working. 36. total intake: 500ml IVF + 2160 ml tea and Milo + 360ml water = 3020 total output: 1400ml urination + bowel The patient is in a positive balance.